Nathanael Marais

Nathanael Marais (4 May 1769-17 October 1798) was a captain of the French Navy during the Quasi-War. He was killed in battle with the US Navy in 1798 during a clash with USS Valiant while serving as captain of Pluton.

Biography
Nathanael Marais was born in Saint-Malo, Brittany, Kingdom of France on 4 May 1769, and he entered the French Navy as a boy. Marais served on a ship during the American Revolutionary War, and he would later rise to become captain of the Sixth Rate Pluton when it was launched in 1796. Marais raided American shipping in the Caribbean during the Quasi-War, and he was forced to engage in combat with the First Rate USS Valiant on 17 October 1798. Pluton was sunk by the superior USS Valiant, and Marais went down with his ship.